Changing Seasons
by Kulani Tawanoki
Summary: A new teammate. A different outlook than before. A special girl with new abilities unlike the rest. Dark eyes are watching. How will Kakashi and his new student fare in this world? KakaxOC
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

"But, Tsunade-sama, I don't think that Naruto and Sakura will want another permanent teammate. After Sasuke left, they've had a hard time adjusting to new additions to the team. Think of what they did with Yamato and Sai." A tall man will silver hair told the hokage. He would look very handsome except for the fact that the only portion of his face that you could see was the right eye and the skin around it. The rest was covered with a mask and his hitai-ate. He let out a soft sigh.

"I'm not trying to disobey orders, Tsunade-sama, but I'm not sure that they'll accept her as a teammate. The wound that Sasuke left is still bleeding for them." Tsunade let out a sigh herself. Her harsh amber eyes met Kakashi's visible one.

"She needs to be watched after desperately, Kakashi, and your team is the only one with an acceptable spot open. Please, if Sakura and Naruto give her any trouble, then you can take her under your wing. She's very special, Kakashi, and you're one of the only ones I would trust her with." Kakashi rubbed the back of his head, deliberating.

"What exactly makes this girl so special? Why are you trying so desperately to get me to take her?" the questions sprang from his lips before he could stop them. He nervously awaited the easily-angered hokage's response. Her eyes hardened and she looked at him seriously.

"Tell me what you know and what you've been told about demons." Kakashi blinked and paused, momentarily taken aback by the demand. Why was she asking him about the demon race? Thinking about his life's current balance in the same room as the angry hokage, he quickly thought up every fact that he knew about the creatures.

"The demons have a hierarchy. The tailed beasts, bijuu, are at the top, being the largest and most powerful. They usually control one or two of the main elements, such as wind or fire, or one of the life elements, such as death or illusions. They're not easily controlled, but can be sealed within a young human child, bonding their chakra coils and becoming mortal within the human's body. These are called jinchuuriki, and Konoha has one by the name of Uzumaki Naruto.

"Next comes the upper-class demons, or taiyoukai. They normally have a very animalistic-like form and can control a certain element, or just a skill that will allow them to best themselves and take new mates or lands. They're very easily angered and can be very territorial, and not easily reasoned with. The last sighting of a taiyoukai was about a hundred years ago, on the west border of the Fire Country. They've gone into hiding because people keep trying to control them to use as weapons.

"After that comes the lower-class, or youkai. They can have an animalistic form or a human-like form, with a distinguishing feature that sets them apart from other humans. That can be a strange marking, or maybe strange colorings of hair. A very select few have special abilities, the placement being almost random or just in family bloodlines – just like our kekkei genkai. A few fairy tails have been spread about romantic relationships between the youkai and the humans, but so far, all have been proven false." Kakashi stopped his spur-of-the-moment lecture to watch Tsunade's reaction. She looked almost amused by something, though her features were clearly grave.

"Ah, but that's where you're wrong, Kakashi. We've found that there have been romantic relationships – _successful_ romantic relationships – between the youkai and the humans. Their children are even more rare than the relationships, in fact, only a total of three have been reported. _That_ is why I need you to watch after her. She's a hanyou – a half demon. Do you now understand the severity of the situation?" Kakashi's visible eye widened and he unconsciously clenched his fist. Tsunade's eyes suddenly narrowed dangerously.

"Hatake Kakashi, she may have a strange lineage, but she's got completely human emotions. She's been raised only by humans, so she doesn't even know how to _be_ a demon. Treat her as you would any other human, but be careful of angering her demon self. She's just a girl, Kakashi." Kakashi's features softened and he nodded, carefully unclenching his fist.

"Of course, Tsunade-sama. But just how old is this girl? And just how well can she control her youkai side?" Tsunade shook her head.

"We're not completely sure of either question at the moment." Kakashi sighed and rubbed the back of his head, trying to suppress the headache he knew was on it's way. He looked back up at Tsunade.

"Right, well, I'll definitely make sure that she stays safe while she's under my care. Besides, she and Naruto should get along well, considering he's the jinchuuriki. Maybe that part won't be so hard." Tsunade grimaced.

"Except that she'll probably be very afraid of angering him in any way, shape, or form. And she'll probably treat him like a god and that she's his slave. Remember the hierarchy, Kakashi. Bijuu are at the top and hanyou, like her, are even lower that dirt." Kakashi let out a sigh.

"Right. I forgot. So, does this girl have a name?" Tsunade's eyes narrowed dangerously and she glared, though Kakashi could tell that the glare went right through him and on to someone else beyond him.

"The ANBU that found her weren't very…well we'll say that they weren't very gentle with her. She won't speak with anyone and she's very afraid of anyone touching her. That's another reason that I need your team to take care of her. Even if they don't like her, Naruto and Sakura wouldn't dare hurt her." Kakashi nodded, his own eye narrowing at the ANBU's actions. Recently, they thought they could get all the power they wanted. It was getting worse and worse.

"Of course. I'll take her on as my charge immediately. When can I take her and let her meet Naruto and Sakura?" Tsunade stood, placing her hands on her desk and moving around it, walking towards the door. Kakashi followed her with his eyes, awaiting a response.

"Right now, if at all possible. She's with Shizune right now. And…well…" Tsunade trailed off, searching for words as she neared the door. "She has no place to stay, so if you could possibly ask Sakura or someone to take her in, that'd be much appreciated." Kakashi frowned at her organization, or lack thereof.

"If the ANBU are going to be after her, I could protect her better than Sakura could. No offense to your training techniques, Tsunade-sama, but I'd personally feel better if she were under my own roof. I've got an extra room that I never use anyway. Now, let's go save her from Shizune." Tsunade nodded and led him down the hallways. Soon, he was hearing Shizune's muffled voice.

"Tsunade's on her way down here with your new sensei. He's going to be sure that you're safe and sound while you're in Konoha. Why don't you tell me your name so that I can tell him for you?" No answer came and Tsunade looked at him and sighed, coming to a door and knocking three times. "Come in!"

Tsunade opened the door and Kakashi stepped into the room ahead of her. Shizune stood awkwardly against the wall, holding one of her arms, and looking at Tsunade with a sad, almost exasperated expression on her face. Kakashi looked at Shizune's feet and stopped in shock. The figure curled up with her knees to her chest looked to be around fifteen or sixteen years old. Her misty-colored auburn hair spread across her back and hiding her face from his view. His heart clenched in pity as he took in her self-preserving stance. Kakashi knelt beside her and she flinched. He kept a slight distance, trying not to push his boundaries.

"Hello there. My name is Hatake Kakashi. I'm going to be your guardian and your sensei from now on. I was thinking that you might like to go get something to eat and meet my other students. I'm sure that you're bored of waiting around in this office all day, ne? Why don't we go now?" The girl looked up and Kakashi was stunned into silence. She was the most beautiful creature that Kakashi had ever laid eyes upon. Her long hair still partially covered her face, but her eyes were a bright, almost iridescent green color. She nodded, her movements slow, almost shy, and made a move to stand up. Kakashi stood first and offered his hand down to help her to her feet. Her iridescent eyes narrowed in confusion and suspicion, but she extended a pale hand for help and he got her to her feet. She was taller than she had looked on the floor and came up to about his shoulder. Her attire wasn't flattering – an old sweater and some ratty pants – but she seemed to make them look beautiful.

"You'll be fine with Kakashi. He'll take good care of you." Tsunade promised, reaching out to touch the girl's shoulder. She let out a quiet, raspy whimper and flinched away, causing Tsunade to immediately take back her hand. "You'll get to meet Uzumaki Naruto and Haruno Sakura, your new teammates." She continued, unperturbed by the girl's reaction. The hanyou girl nodded slowly, looking at Tsunade, almost excited, but still afraid. Kakashi smiled and held his hand out for her to take again.

"Are you ready to go and meet them?" The hanyou girl nodded and hesitantly took his hand. Shizune and Tsunade shared a hopeful glance as Kakashi led her out the door. The hanyou girl looked around in wonder as they walked down the streets of Konoha.

"Have you not been outside of that office building since you were brought here?" She looked at him and shook her head. Kakashi raised his visible eyebrow. "Will you tell me why you won't talk to me?" The girl hesitated for a moment, looking around her, and then her eyes widened. She grabbed his hand and led him over to a mask kiosk. She took an ANBU mask off of a rack and put it on. Then, she turned back towards him and very slowly and lightly, wrapped her hands around his throat. She put the mask back and touched her throat softly. Kakashi's eyes widened and he pointed to the high collar.

"May I see?" She pursed her lips, hesitating, before gathering her hair from around her shoulders and pulling it behind her back. Then, she lifted her head backwards slightly, exposing her neck. Kakashi very gently rolled her collar down and winced at the painful-looking bruises laid out in a fingerprint-like pattern across her neck. "Those ANBU really did a number on you, didn't they?" The hanyou nodded, backing away from the contact and rolling her collar back up.

"So, does that mean that you'll talk after your neck feels better?" The jounin asked hopefully. The hanyou smiled and nodded. She looked up at the evening sky and pointed to the slowly setting sun, and then pointed to the west horizon, looking back at him expectantly.

"Tonight?" She nodded and then pointed to her elongated canine teeth. "You've got healing abilities because of your youkai side?" She grinned and nodded, looking excited that he had been able to guess everything that she had been trying to get through to him. Kakashi gave her one of his eye-smiles and motioned down the street.

"Well, since I'm not sure of your name yet, I can't call you by name. You're going to have to stay close, all right? There might be a crowd of people in the streets at this hour. But I've told Naruto and Sakura to meet me at a place called Ichiraku Ramen. Have you ever had ramen before?" He began walking, looking back to see her response. She quickly scrambled to stay by his side again, not touching him, but staying closer so she didn't get lost. She paused, thinking it over, and then shook her head, tilting it to the side slightly in question.

"It's like soup with noodles and other stuff in it, depending on which kind you order. But beware all right? It'll be hot for one and for another, don't let your hands anywhere _near_ Naruto while he's eating ramen. He'll eat ten times as much as anyone else. It's almost disgusting." She wrinkled her nose and then put a hand to her mouth as if suppressing a giggle. Kakashi grinned and led her to the stand. She unconsciously grabbed his sleeve, hesitant, and he gave her a comforting eye-smile. Sakura and Naruto were sitting at stools, waiting for him to join them.

"Yo." He called originally as they neared the stand. Both of them looked up at him with grumpy expressions on their faces.

"You're late again, Kakashi-sensei. It's been almost an hour since you told us to meet you here. I should learn not to come until an hour after you say to come." Sakura told him, rolling her eyes. Naruto just huffed, his eyes on the beautiful hanyou slightly hidden behind Kakashi. He pointed his chopsticks at her, and she ducked behind Kakashi.

"Who's the girl, Kakashi-sensei? Is she your girlfriend or something like that?" Kakashi sighed and shook his head, placing her in the stool next to the one he was sitting in and against the wall so that no one could come on the other side of her. She looked up at him, confused and he gave her an eye-smile.

"This, both of you, is your new, permanent teammate. Why don't you introduce yourselves?" Sakura and Naruto both looked at her and she moved her head so that her hair was hiding her face. Her green eyes peered curiously out of her misty-auburn locks. Sakura found her voice first and smiled slightly.

"Hi there. My name is Haruno Sakura. It's nice to meet you." She extended a hand towards the hanyou girl, who flinched. Sakura pulled her hand back, a confused expression on her face. Naruto looked over at her next.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto. What's your name anyway?" He asked, openly curious as always. The hanyou girl looked at him, opened her mouth, and then looked at Kakashi for help. Kakashi sighed and nodded, turning to look at his other two students.

"I don't know her name yet either. And don't feel hurt if she flinched away from your touch. The ANBU have made her afraid of any of us, but she'll learn soon that she's got nothing to fear from us." The girl flashed him a soft smile, nodding, and then touched her throat. "Oh, and because she was almost strangled, she's too sore to talk right now, but she should be better by tonight." She nodded and then smiled shyly at Sakura and Naruto. Sakura smiled back and Naruto gave her a wide grin.

"Hey, Kakashi, the kids were wondering where you were." The ramen shop owner walked over to them. "And I see that you've got a new student. She's a beautiful little thing, isn't she?" The hanyou blushed darkly and ducked her head as she heard his comment. The ramen shop owner chuckled softly. "So, what can I get all of you?"

"I want the usual! You know how I like it, jii-san!"

"I'll have some ebi ramen please, jii-san." Sakura asked politely. Kakashi, who didn't enjoy ramen nearly as much as everyone else, didn't order himself any ramen and then the ramen shop owner turned to the hanyou girl, who was still hiding her face. Kakashi looked at her and then at the shop owner.

"She'll have some chicken ramen." He ordered for her. The hanyou looked up at him, slightly confused, and the shop owner went to fix their dishes. Kakashi looked over at the girl, smiling. "I hope you'll like it. When you know ramen flavors, then you'll be able to decide your favorite." The hanyou girl smiled and nodded, and then stopped, shocked, when Naruto let out a horrified gasp.

"Kakashi-sensei? Are you trying to tell me that this girl has never had _ramen_ before?" Kakashi nodded.

"Yes, Naruto, you heard right. She doesn't think that she's ever had ramen in her entire life." Naruto openly gaped at the hanyou girl, who's cheeks were painted red in confusion and embarrassment.

"That's completely _crazy_! How can someone go their whole life without eating the very breath of life that is _ramen_!? You've been missing _out_!" The hanyou girl looked down as if he had just verbally punished her and both Kakashi and Sakura gave Naruto a look.

"It's not a bad thing, I promise. Naruto just gets a little over-excited when it comes to the topic of ramen." Kakashi touched the girl on the knee and she flinched, quickly turning her body away from him. Kakashi sighed softly and Sakura talked softly to Naruto, scolding him. The hanyou's glimmering eyes looked up at Kakashi almost apologetically and he smiled.

"Don't worry. You'll get better eventually. You can't be afraid of us forever." Kakashi promised. The hanyou girl nodded and then jumped when the bowl was set down in front of her by the ramen owner. He pulled his hand back quickly at her response and gave her a smile.

"There you go, missy. Let's see if you like it." He put everyone else's order in front of them and then went back to work. Kakashi reached over to her, being careful not to touch her as she cautiously sniffed the dish in front of her, and broke the chopsticks by her bowl. He handed them to her.

"You know how to use chopsticks, don't you?" The hanyou girl smiled and nodded, taking them without touching his skin. Kakashi sat back in his seat and she looked past him with a slightly confused, almost awestruck expression. Kakashi looked behind him and saw Naruto already halfway done with his bowl, shoving all the noodles into his mouth. When he turned back to her, she had picked up the noodles and then looked around him to Naruto. She started putting all of them in her mouth like he was doing and then coughed when it became too much for her and put her chopsticks down, looking at the ramen with a confused expression. Kakashi held back a laugh.

"You don't have to eat like Naruto. You can eat it slowly, like Sakura." Sakura was carefully blowing on her noodles before eating a smaller portion. Naruto was already halfway through his second bowl. Her eyes widened and she nodded, picking up a few strands of noodles and blowing on them lightly, then putting them in her mouth. She made a delighted expression and immediately picked up another mouthful. Kakashi chuckled softly as he watched her watch the others and then try and copy their movements until she was done. Naruto had picked up the remains of his fifth bowl and tilted the broth at the bottom down his throat. The hanyou girl's eyes narrowed and she looked around the stand slowly. Suddenly, she picked up a hollow piece of reed that was used as a decoration and stuck it in the bowl, drinking the broth that way. Kakashi was impressed at her resourcefulness. She would probably make a good shinobi if he could teach her.

"Now, what did you think of it? Did you like it?" Kakashi asked her. She nodded and smiled happily. Naruto laughed and nearly choked on the noodle strand going down his throat.

"Ha! I knew she would! Ramen is amazing!" He downed his seventh bowl in a few gulps. Sakura pushed her own bowl forward and smiled at the ramen store owner.

"Thanks for the food, jii-san. Here's my money." She left the exact change on the counter next to her bowl and turned to Kakashi. "Do we still have training tomorrow morning, Kakashi-sensei?" Kakashi thought it over, glancing out of the corner of his eye at the hanyou girl sitting there calmly, watching Naruto with a confused expression on her face, and then nodded.

"Sure. I'll be there. But let's make it a little later, say around ten in the morning. I think our new teammate here needs a new outfit. Maybe you could help her with that." Sakura looked excited and nodded, grinning at the hanyou's confused expression.

"Sure! I'll help her. Where's she staying? I'll pick her up tomorrow morning." Kakashi smiled at the hanyou girl as well and then turned back to Sakura.

"She's staying with me until we can find other arrangements for her. You know where I live, right, Sakura?" Sakura's eyes narrowed slightly but she nodded, turning to the hanyou girl with a smile.

"Don't worry! I'll make sure that you're dressed properly. Maybe Ino'd like to come along too." She shrugged and then moved away from the stand. "Thanks again, jii-chan! The food's amazing!" Kakashi stood as well and the girl scrambled to get to her feet. He put money on the counter and motioned for her to follow him. She quickly grabbed onto his sleeve so that she wouldn't lose him in the crowd that was gathering quickly. When they got a few feet away from the stand, she stopped suddenly and ran back, bowing slightly.

"Thank you for the good food!" She murmured in a quiet voice. Kakashi stared at her in surprise, as did both the ramen owner and Naruto, who had noodles hanging out of her mouth. Her voice was soft and whispery and sounded very beautiful. The ramen owner regained his ability to move and speak first.

"You're welcome, darlin'. You can come back anytime you want to all right? We'll soon figure out your favorite flavor." She grinned and nodded and then turned to Naruto.

"It was very nice to meet you, Uzumaki-san. I hope that I won't hold you back as your teammate." Naruto still gaped openly in shock and she blushed, running quickly back to Kakashi. He was still frozen and she looked at him in alarm. "I didn't do something wrong, did I, Hatake-sensei?" Kakashi quickly shook his head, giving her an eye-smile.

"You did just fine. But please, call me Kakashi. No one ever calls me 'Hatake'." The hanyou girl nodded, smiling at him and grabbing onto his sleeve slightly. "Can you tell me your name now?" He asked as he continued walking down the street, getting closer and closer to his house. She smiled and nodded.

"My name is Kongyou Asamoya. Thank you for taking me in, Kakashi-sensei." Her beautiful voice answered him. He smiled.

"Kongyou-san. You've got a very pretty name." Her lip came out in a slight pout and she shook her head at him.

"No, no. Not 'Kongyou-san'. Asamoya." Kakashi, who had stopped in shock when she shook her head, then smiled.

"Right. Asamoya. Let's get you settled in here." He opened the door to his house and led her inside.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Asamoya hesitantly followed Kakashi into the small house he had led her to. The house was practically hidden behind a taller building, but it was easily findable once you knew where to look. Her grip tightened on his sleeve and her nostrils flared taking in all the new scents. Kakashi flipped a light on and Asamoya looked around curiously. It was a little messy, typical single male house, but not as bad as she had been expecting. Kakashi looked back and gave her an eye-smile.

"Sorry for the mess, Asamoya. I'm not used to having any company. No one usually comes here except for me." Asamoya shook her head and then glared as her hair fell into her eyes. She blew it away and it just came back. She scowled at it and then smiled up at Kakashi.

"It's good." She still wasn't used to having her voice for the past three days. It had taken her a while to heal, though she wasn't sure why. "I've seen worse." She narrowed her eyes, pausing to look around. "Much worse." Kakashi chuckled and then quickly began picking things up and putting them either in the trash or wherever else they were supposed to go. Asamoya watched his movements for a moment and then walked over, picking things up and putting them where they were supposedly supposed to go. Kakashi looked up and frowned.

"Asamoya, you don't have to do that. It's not your job, it's mine." Asamoya paused what she was doing, narrowing her eyes as she thought it over for a moment. She shrugged.

"If I'm temporarily living here," she began, continuing on what she had been doing, "then I'm temporarily cleaning my temporary house." Kakashi chuckled and resumed his own cleaning as well. After a few minutes, everything was completed. Kakashi sighed and sat down in a chair, rolling his neck.

"Asamoya? Is there anything that you need that would make you more comfortable during your stay here?" When no answer came after a moment, he opened his eye and looked around, worried. She was standing on one side of the room, next to a shelf, staring at two pictures. He got to his feet and walked over to her, looking over her shoulder.

"That was my genin team when I was a genin. And this one," he reached around her and pointed to the picture on the right. "This one was my genin team now that I'm a jounin and can be a teacher." Asamoya's fingers slowly trailed across the pictures, her eyes distant as she got lost in thought.

"Am I just a replacement?" She asked suddenly after a few moments of silence. Kakashi followed her gaze down to where her fingers had fallen over Sasuke. He looked at her in surprise and then paused, shrugging slightly.

"In one way, I guess you are his replacement, considering he isn't on our team any longer." Kakashi motioned to Sasuke. "But, Tsunade placed you on our team permanently because she thought you would fit with us. In that way, you're not a replacement so much as a new teammate." She nodded slightly.

"Will I be hunted?" She asked in a quite voice, her eyes guarded and afraid. Kakashi sighed deciding that it was better to be honest with her than to let her take her guard down when she might need it later.

"The ANBU, those masked figures that brought you here, they thing that you're a threat to the safety of the village. They're supposedly doing whatever they have in their power to do to remove the threat you supposedly pose, but they're not allowed to do much against Tsunade's orders. Besides, I'm going to protect you." Asamoya looked up at him, her iridescent green eyes holding so much emotion that it took Kakashi's breath away.

"I've never had someone actually try and protect me before. Thank you, Kakashi-sensei." Kakashi found his breath again and smiled at her. A shy smile touched her lips and she looked back down at the pictures.

"You must be tired, Asamoya. Come on, I'll show you where you can sleep." He turned and motioned for her to follow him. She looked at the pictures for a brief moment longer and then began walking towards him. He smiled and opened a door leading to the guest room. It was a small room that only had a bed and a small dresser in it.

"This is your new room, Asamoya. Sorry that it's a little small, but…" he shrugged. Asamoya looked at him in complete shock and his visible eye widened, thinking that he had upset her in some way or another.

"You're not serious, Kakashi-sensei, are you? I don't think that I need a whole room to myself. I only take up a little room, you don't have to put yourself out." Kakashi sighed, relieved that he hadn't done something wrong.

"No, Asamoya, this is just a spare room. I don't use it and it'll be put to better use being your room. You can do whatever you want with it." Asamoya's eyes were still wide as she stepped into the room, running her fingers over the sheets of the bed and the wooden desk. Her nostrils were flaring as she took in the new scents around her and she smiled at him.

"I'm not entirely sure that I really need a whole room to myself, Kakashi-sensei, but thank you. For taking me in and all." She murmured quietly. Kakashi smiled and shook his head.

"It's the least I can do for you after what it sounds like you've been through since you were dragged through the village gates. I think it's time for these old bones to go to sleep. You can stay up if you want to. How do you want me to wake you up in the morning? Sakura's taking you out to get a new outfit, remember?" Her eyes, which had been narrowed when he said 'old', widened when he reminded her of her shopping trip for the next morning.

"Oh…I forgot about that! Uhm…well…I…" She paused, biting her lip. Kakashi waited patiently for her to tell him. "Uhm, well, I guess that you could just come in and wake me up however I could be woken up. I...Nobody's…well…I've never had to be woken up before, except from my own instincts. I'm sorry." She looked down. Kakashi shook his head.

"No, no, Asamoya. I didn't ask you so that you'd feel sorry about not knowing. I'll try and wake you up without touching you, how's that?" Asamoya nodded quickly. Kakashi smiled at her. "Good night, Asamoya. Have a good sleep." He walked out of the room and shut the door behind him, walking across the hall into his room. He shut the door behind him and laid down in his bed, taking off the headband that kept his sharingan eye covered. Soon after, he was asleep.

"Kakashi-sensei. Kakashi-sensei, wake up. Come on, Kakashi-sensei." He was aware of a faintly familiar voice murmuring in his ear, but he couldn't force himself to wake. "Maybe he's sick…" the person murmured to themself absent-mindedly. The bed below him moved slightly and suddenly he felt something tickling his head. His hair was moved from his forehead and he felt someone else's skin touching him. His eyes shot open. Asamoya had her forehead to his, her eyes closed and her brow furrowed in thought.

"Asamoya?" He murmured a question. Her eyes shot open and she scrambled backwards, backing against the wall. He sat up quickly, automatically reaching for his headband as the girl cowered by the door.

"I-I'm sorry, Kakashi-sensei! I didn't mean to do anything wrong! I-I-I th-thought th-that I was supposed to wake you up and I tried to do it without touching you or being forceful, but then you wouldn't wake up and I got worried and thought you were sick and so I was checking to see if you had a fever, but then you woke up and I don't think you have a fever but I didn't know at the time and-and –" Kakashi held up his hands to stop her.

"Asamoya, Asamoya, calm down!" She fell silent, her green eyes watching him fearfully. Kakashi put the headband over his eye, making sure it would stay, and then looked at her again. "You don't have to apologize for anything. You didn't do anything wrong. I'm sorry that I startled you." He got up and moved over to her, kneeling down next to her. She shied away slightly, but he moved closer. "You don't need to be afraid of me. I'm not going to hurt you." He worked to make his voice as convincing as possible.

"I…I know." She whispered. It caught him off guard. "It feels…different being around you, Kakashi-sensei. I don't know how to explain it, but I feel…safe around you. It feels like I don't need to worry about anything. It's…nice." She murmured, looking up at him. Kakashi smiled.

"That's a good sign, Asamoya. It means that you trust me. I can promise you that I'll never betray your trust and that I'll protect you. You're under my care now." She smiled.

"That feels nice too. I feel safe here, with you, in this house. I've never felt safe before, because of what I am. But you don't…you don't treat me like the monster that I've come to know myself as." Kakashi smiled and touched her shoulder. His eyes widened, thinking that he may have over-stepped himself, but she just smiled, not moving.

"You're not a monster, Asamoya, you're just special. You're unique, and people are jealous of other people that are unique." He stood and offered a hand down to her, which she took without a second's hesitation. When she was safely on her feet, he continued. "Take Naruto for example. He houses the Kyuubi and people have always been hard on him because of it." Asamoya's eyes widened.

"Uzumaki-san is the Kyuubi's carrier? And I wasn't aware of it? Oh, no!" Her hands went to her face. "Does that mean I'm in trouble? I've heard about the hierarchy of the demons before, but I've never actually come face-to-face with another one of the demon race. B-but Kyuubi is supposed to be the most powerful of any demon _ever_, isn't he? He can punish me without another thought!" Kakashi shook his head, putting his hands on either one of Asamoya's shoulders.

"You don't have to be afraid of Naruto, Asamoya. He houses the Kyuubi, but he is _not_ the Kyuubi. He's very kind and generous to people. He probably hasn't even heard of the demon hierarchy anyway, so he couldn't punish you, even if you actually did something worth punishing." Asamoya still looked nervous, but she nodded, another thing coming to mind.

"Are you going to tell Haruno-san and Uzumaki-san that I'm a hanyou?" Kakashi paused and shrugged.

"I wasn't sure whether you wanted me to or not, Asamoya. I was going to leave that up to you. Sakura and Naruto were on the same team for four years before Sakura was aware even that Naruto housed the Kyuubi. She didn't think any different of him. They're not going to judge you based on your lineage." Asamoya bit her lip and nodded.

"I think I understand. I've never been on a team before, so I'm not sure how to react around someone that's on the same team as me. But, from what you've told me, if you really want to, you can keep secrets from your teammates, but it's better to let it out in the open, right?" She looked up at him curiously. Kakashi smiled and nodded.

"That's right." Something bothered her again because her eyes narrowed in thought and her teeth worried her bottom lip again. She looked at him hesitantly, and then thought better of it and looked away. "Asamoya, you don't have to be afraid to say things around me." Asamoya nodded and looked up at him.

"I was just wondering…" she looked away and then looked back up at him. "I was just wondering why you cover the bottom half of your face." Kakashi's eyes widened in surprise and her eyes widened. "B-but you don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to! It was just a passing curiosity! I don't really need to know!" Kakashi shook his head.

"No, no. That's not it. I was just surprised that you would ask something like that. Most people just wonder what's behind my mask, not the reason behind it." Asamoya looked curious for a moment, but then looked away when he smiled slightly. "I guess that the reason I started wearing the mask was because I was ashamed of my family. My father abandoned a mission, saying that team was more important, and that's not the way I thought back then. He killed himself, and I was ashamed that he would be so cowardly, so I hid my face." Asamoya looked at him, her green eyes sad, and then slowly wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I'm sorry, Kakashi-sensei." She murmured softly, this time not apologizing for anything _she_ might have done, but apologizing for the life _he _had when he was younger. It took Kakashi a moment to recover, but then he gave her a soft hug in return and smiled.

"It doesn't bother me anymore. I guess that it's just old habit that I wear the mask now. It might be better that I remove it, but I kind of like having it on." Asamoya grinned up at him.

"I like the mask on, Kakashi-sensei. It makes you unique too." Kakashi chuckled and then stopped when there was a knock at the door.

"Ah, that must be Sakura here to get you to take you shopping. She's not going to hurt you either you know." Asamoya took a deep breath and nodded, stepping back and releasing him. Kakashi held back a disappointed look.

"I know. Are we…training…after Haruno-san takes me 'shopping'?" He chuckled, hearing the quotations in her voice.

"Yes. Now, I'd better open the door before she barges in here, thinking that we're both still asleep." He walked over to the door and she giggled quietly behind him. It almost made him stop in his tracks, the sound was so beautiful to his ears, but he forced himself to keep going and open the door. "Ah, Sakura, good morning." Sakura smiled at him.

"Good morning, Kakashi-sensei. It's nice weather out this morning, isn't it?" Kakashi smiled at her and nodded.

"That it is. Come on in. Asamoya's awake and ready to go, right, Asamoya?" He turned and walked back into the house.

"I'm ready!" She called back. "I think!" Kakashi chuckled and Sakura's eyes went wide, hearing her voice. Asamoya appeared in the front hallway, a smile on her face. "How are you ready to go shopping and then I can answer your question, Kakashi-sensei? Good morning, Haruno-san. Are you well this morning?" Sakura stared for a moment, making Asamoya look up at Kakashi, confused. "Did I say something wrong?"

"N-no!" Sakura finally managed to get out, startling Asamoya. "You didn't say anything wrong it's just…you said. Well, you spoke, that is. Your voice is very pretty. I'd bet that you have an amazing singing voice. Have you ever tried to sing before?" Asamoya shook her head.

"No. I guess that I've just never had time to learn any songs. I heard some of the villagers singing, when I would pass through, but I never thought that I would be allowed to join in. I was always on the run." She shrugged. Sakura opened her mouth to start asking questions, but Kakashi cleared his throat.

"If you want to be back in time for training, I suggest that you start leaving now. If I know you, Sakura, it may take you an hour just to find somewhere to go." Sakura snorted indignantly and Kakashi chuckled. He pulled out his wallet and pushed some bills into Asamoya's hand. "Use that. I'll see you both at the training field at ten o'clock." Asamoya frowned at the bills, confused, and Sakura dragged her away, chattering up a storm.

"I can't believe that you're staying with Kakashi-sensei, Asamoya. I mean, you'd think, even if you didn't have a place of your own to stay that they'd put you with a female sensei like Kurenai-sensei. Or even Anko-sensei. But, oh well, I guess that they figured Kakashi wouldn't mind. Especially with you being placed on our team." Asamoya's eyes narrowed in thought.

"Haruno-san? Would you please tell me what Sasuke-san was like? Kakashi-sensei never explained him to me. Why isn't he on your team anymore?" Sakura sighed and began her explanation, taking Asamoya out of Kakashi's sight. Kakashi chuckled quietly and went back into his house. Not two minutes after his door had shut, there was a knock. Kakashi rolled his eyes and got up to answer the door.

"Kakashi." An old friend, Umino Iruka, stood at his door. "I heard that you and Naruto have another teammate. Is he anything like Sasuke?" Kakashi shook his head and moved aside so that Iruka could come in.

"No, Iruka, _she_'s nothing like Sasuke. Her name is Kongyou Asamoya." Iruka's eyes widened and he stared at the jounin.

"Do you mean to tell me that you've got a _female_ living here with you? A female _student_? Do you know what everyone's going to think? Please tell me that you didn't volunteer for this." Kakashi scoffed.

"It's nothing like that, Iruka. You of all people should know me better than _that._ Yes, I did volunteer in taking her, but only because they were going to put her with Haruno Sakura and I didn't feel like Sakura could protect her from the ANBU. She's a hanyou, Iruka, and the ANBU are bound and determined to run her out of the village." Iruka's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"A _hanyou_? As in a child of a youkai and a human? Isn't that dangerous?" Kakashi took a deep breath, trying to calm the boiling anger that usually came when he was trying to explain something to someone that was determined not to listen.

"Iruka, if you met her, you wouldn't say that she was dangerous at all. She's very shy, and because of the ANBU, she's scared of physical contact with anyone from here. She shied away from a handshake, for crying out loud. And besides, Asamoya –"

"You're on first name basis with her? After only one night?" Kakashi glared and Iruka's open mouth shut with a snap.

"As I was saying, Asamoya doesn't understand anything about this way of life. All she's known is running and being hunted for what she is and, as crazy as it may seem, I want to make sure she never has to run again." A sly grin appeared on Iruka's face and Kakashi's visible eye narrowed. "What? What are you grinning about now?" Iruka shook his head, the grin still visible.

"Oh, nothing, Kakashi. Nothing at all. Or…at least…nothing right now." Kakashi's mouth opened to demand a better answer but Iruka opened the door again. "Sorry, Kakashi, I've got a class that I've got to get to. You know how academy students are. They're so impatient." He slipped out the door, but Kakashi got one last look at the sly grin that had been plastered on his friend's face. He rolled his eyes, thinking that it was just prolonged exposure to the insanity of academy students. Kakashi got to his feet and walked out the door, heading straight for the training area.

As he walked, he tried to think of what kind of techniques he could do that would keep Naruto occupied without being too hard on Asamoya. He wondered what exactly her youkai abilities allowed her to do, and if she even had enough chakra to perform ninja abilities in the first place. He wasn't too sure about a youkai's chakra coils, but if the Kyuubi sealed within Naruto was any indication, Asamoya should have plenty of chakra.

But what exactly could he do to test her abilities without her feeling overwhelmed? He pondered the fact, his feet taking him where he needed to be out of sheer habit, rather than on current mental capacity. Soon, he arrived at Team Seven's training area, the only area he had ever really made them train at. Kakashi absent-mindedly touched one of the three tree stumps that had been so instrumental in the first test.

"Oi, Kakashi-sensei! You're early! There's a change!" The familiar voice of the hyper-active blonde shinobi called, laughing. "Where's that pretty girl that was with you before? Surely you haven't run her off already!" Kakashi shook his head.

"No, I haven't run her off, Naruto. I thought that she needed clothes more suitable for training, so I sent her with Sakura this morning. They're shopping." Naruto let out a groan.

"We're going to have to wait here for forever! Why'd you let Sakura go _shopping_?" Kakashi chuckled at his obvious acceptance of the fact that females took forever when the word 'shopping' was involved.

"Don't worry about it, Naruto. Asamoya's with her and she was very excited to start her training today. Did you know that she's never had shinobi training before? We're going to have to help her get situated, so try not to be too obnoxious about it, all right?" Naruto snorted and then his eyes widened.

"Did you hear her _voice_ last night, Kakashi-sensei? I mean, damn, she's got some good looks, but I never expected her voice to sound like that! And her eyes are so cool. It's like she's one of those cats at night when their eyes hit a specific light." Kakashi's eyes widened and he nodded.

"You're right. Everything about her is pretty beautiful, isn't it, Naruto." He grinned at the young boy, who blushed. Kakashi was about to tease the orange-clad shinobi even more, but he caught something pink out of the corner of his eye and looked up.

"Sorry we're a little late, Kakashi-sensei. I was trying to show Asamoya-san how to get here on her own if she ever needed to." Kakashi waved it off and then looked over at Asamoya. He was glad that his mask hid the expression of the bottom half of his face because his jaw dropped hard. Asamoya smiled at him and Sakura made her do a little spin.

"Do you like it, Kakashi-sensei?"


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three **

"I-It's v-very nice, Asamoya. You l-look beautiful." He, unfortunately, could not keep the surprised stutter out of his voice. Naruto wasn't so subtle. Kakashi thought that the younger shinobi's jaw had actually hit the ground. Sakura started laughing at their expressions. Asamoya blushed and ducked her head, a smile on her lips.

The hanyou girl was wearing a black top that just covered her chest and had mesh trailing down, covering her stomach in see-through material. She had on black shin-length pants and a belt that connected to a dark green flare that came down to where her pants cut off. Sakura had put her in a dark green jacket that had slight similarities to Kakashi's vest, only Asamoya's jacket had sleeves that came down to her elbows and came down to her waist. Her hair was up in a long ponytail that still, even up, came down to her waist.

"All right, enough of all of this." Kakashi found his voice again. Naruto still hadn't snapped out of it, so Kakashi gave him a nudge. "We need to determine what all Asamoya can do. Sakura, Naruto, the both of you will try and attack her. Asamoya, your job is to dodge until you find an opening. Let's see what you can do." Asamoya nodded, facing Sakura and Naruto with a grin on her face. Sakura and Naruto looked at each other, a slightly anxious expression on their faces.

"Are you sure about this, Kakashi-sensei? I mean, she's never been trained as a shinobi before, has she? She's not even technically a shinobi of Konoha. She doesn't have a hitai-ate." Sakura asked their sensei. Asamoya shook her head.

"Please, don't worry about me. I've had to be on the run ever since I was a very small girl. I think I can handle two shinobi that are not on the same level as the ANBU that forced me here." Naruto's eyes narrowed and Kakashi smiled. Asamoya had already learned that you need to poke at Naruto's abilities to get him to attack. She was quick.

"Fine! Get ready, Asamoya! Here I come!" Naruto shot forward, quickly followed by Sakura who, because of Naruto's rash decision, now had no choice but to follow along. Naruto leapt at Asamoya with a kick and at the very last moment, she turned her body to the side, causing Naruto to hit the ground at an odd angle and crumple to the ground. Sakura came at her from the side and she leapt into the air, dodging Sakura's punch by about twenty feet of air. Sakura quickly turned to look at the sky. Naruto got to his feet.

"She's gone!" He gasped in surprise. Sakura stared at where Asamoya had been suspended in mid-air.

"She's fast." Kakashi nodded his agreement, barely suppressing the urge to activate his sharingan to pinpoint Asamoya's location. Suddenly, a blurred, dark shape leapt out of the woods and crashed into Naruto's form, taking him into the other side of the woods. Sakura glared around her, trying to decide where the hanyou girl was. A shape suddenly crashed into her and the next thing she knew, she was tied to a tree with ropes tied tightly around her arms. Naruto's indignant cries were muffled and coming from her right.

"Now…time for your sensei…" The beautiful voice murmured near her. Asamoya smiled at both Sakura and Naruto, giving a bow of her head. "I apologize for this, but I think it would be good if you learned to fight against someone unlike you." Naruto's muffled rant trailed off into confused muttering and Sakura tilted her head.

"Not like us? What do you mean? Not on our team?" Asamoya shook her head, looking nervous.

"You don't need to know that yet. It's not the right time. Pardon me, please. I'll return in a moment." Asamoya quickly ran away, eyes darting left and right, trying to spot unseen enemies in the forest shadows. She noticed that Kakashi was still sitting on the training stumps, fingers twitching impatiently, as if he was wanting to do something other than just sit there. Asamoya bit her lip and quietly snuck up behind the training stump, preparing to spring. Holding her breath, she shot forward and pounced, tackling the silver-haired jounin. He let out a cry of surprise as he hit the ground.

"Good morning, Kakashi-sensei." She whispered quietly. Kakashi looked up at her smiling face and couldn't keep a chuckle from escaping his lips.

"So. Have I fallen as well as Naruto and Sakura?" Asamoya smiled and nodded, shifting her weight and getting off of him with as little contact as possible. "Ah, I've been getting soft. A little kitten like you has bested me." Asamoya gave him a look and pouted.

"I've had to fight ever since I was old enough that they would stop trying to drown me, Kakashi-sensei. You're not soft, I'm just good." Kakashi chuckled again and sat up. "Should I go and release Naruto and Sakura now?" A small, mischievous gleam entered her sensei's eyes and she couldn't help but smile. "You want me to leave them there? For how long?" Kakashi sighed and became a teacher again.

"Well, they do need to learn how to fight you…I guess we could go and see how they're doing. I'm surprised we can't hear Naruto." Asamoya scoffed and stood up, offering her hand down for Kakashi to take.

"Oh, don't insult me, Kakashi-sensei." A smirk lit up her face. "I gagged him." Kakashi's eye widened in shock and surprise before he burst into laughter. She giggled and he took her hand, standing up. He didn't account for the fact that he might have pulled a little too much because she fell into his chest as soon as he was on his feet. A blush lit up her face and his and they both took a step back from each other. Kakashi cleared his throat nervously.

"Right. Let's go and see how they're doing, shall we?" Asamoya cleared her own throat and nodded, turning to him.

"I don't want to have to wait for you to catch up, sensei, so you're going to have to hold onto my hand tightly, okay?" Before he could ask any questions, she grabbed his hand and took off running into the forest. Kakashi had never gone this fast before and he watched the trees blow past in a dark blur, blinking at the new sight. Soon, they sped upwards and she sat him on a tree branch. Kakashi blinked down at the sight of Sakura and Naruto both tied against trees and Naruto having his headband tied in his mouth with the metal part at the back of his head. He barely suppressed a chuckle at the orange-clad shinobi's indignant expression.

"You really did a number on them, Asamoya. Tell me, out of curiosity, where exactly are we?" Asamoya blinked at him, rather than watching her 'prey'. Her eyes flashed, much like a cat's did when caught at night and she shrugged.

"It's someplace the ANBU people were threatening to throw me. I figured that if I didn't get a hold of you, or if you didn't surrender and was going to try and find your comrades for battle back-up, it would be a place no body would look. I think that I heard them calling this place," she paused, putting a finger to her chin as she thought it over. "The forest of death." Kakashi's eyes widened.

"Time to go. Help me get them free." Kakashi stood to go down and Asamoya quickly scrambled to her feet, grabbing his sleeve.

"Wait a minute, Kakashi-sensei. Did I do something wrong again? Is this a bad place? Have I put my teammates in danger?" Her eyes were wide and her skin was paling, but Kakashi couldn't help but be honest with her.

"It's not that you did something _wrong_, you just didn't know any better. This is called the forest of _death_ for a reason, Asamoya. All of us are in danger. There are evil creatures lurking in these woods. And the fact that the ANBU patrol it constantly." Asamoya's eyes widened even further and she leapt down to the forest floor. Naruto began his muffled yelling and Asamoya held her hand up, as if to strike him. Kakashi quickly got to the forest floor, reaching out to stop her.

"Yakedo." She murmured quietly, slashing down. Kakashi stopped as he saw where her strike was headed. The moment her claws touched the ropes holding Naruto to the tree, they sizzled and dropped, as if they had been burned. Naruto stared at Asamoya, wide eyed, before getting his headband out of his mouth and tying it back around his head.

"What _are_ you?" He muttered softly, almost angrily. Kakashi noticed her flinch, but she didn't answer, just did the same to Sakura's ropes and then lean back, away from the both of them.

"I'm sorry that I put you all in this situation." She bowed, her voice broken, as if she was about to cry. "I didn't know." Kakashi wrapped an arm around her shoulders. He half-expected her to move away from his touch, but she just stayed still.

"Asamoya, you're fine. If anything, this can be a training experience. Naruto and Sakura and I have already been here at least once before. Sakura twice." He shrugged. "Me a lot. Anyway, how many of us can you help with your speed?" Asamoya looked up at him, looking determined.

"I think I can get one person besides me to the perimeter and be back quick enough to help the next person before something bad happens to anyone. But I'm not sure." Kakashi nodded, forming a plan in his head.

"Take Sakura then. Naruto, you're with me." All three of his students nodded and Sakura walked over to Asamoya.

"No one's mad at you, Asamoya. You'll learn about this in time." She smiled at her new teammate, who gave a weak smile in return. Asamoya held her hand out and Sakura put her hand in it. Kakashi and Naruto watched as they disappeared, the only indication of them once standing there was an indentation in the moss and the rustling of leaves in the swift wind. Kakashi looked over towards Naruto.

"Please, refrain from asking Asamoya questions like that. It upsets her." Naruto looked at him sheepishly and nodded.

"Sorry, sensei, but not even Lee-kun is that fast! She just surprised me is all. And what was with that attack she used to cut the ropes? I've never seen anything like that!" Kakashi shook his head.

"You've never met anyone like her, Naruto, trust me." He looked to where Asamoya had disappeared to. "Hurry, Asamoya…" he whispered, quiet enough that Naruto didn't hear in the growing volume of the background noise. Something moved in the bushes near them and Kakashi pulled out a kunai, ready to fight against the unseen evil. Naruto stepped towards the sound, his own kunai raised to attack. Asamoya scrambled out of the bushes, falling to the floor in a heap. Kakashi kneeled down next to her, flipping her over so that she wouldn't suffocate on the moss on the ground.

"Asamoya? What happened? Where's Sakura?" Asamoya clutched at his hand and winced. Kakashi looked her over and put his hand gently on her stomach. He pulled his hand away, his eyes widening as he saw the blood on his fingers. "Asamoya! You're bleeding!"

"I-I go-got l-lost," she murmured quietly. "I didn't enter the forest where I could pick up the scent. It's hard anyway, because of all the moss. I ran into –" she broke off, wincing. Kakashi squeezed her hand tightly. "I-into a shadow. It b-bit me. B-but don't wo-worry. I'll be back…to normal…in a moment…" Her eyes closed and Kakashi watched as the wound on her stomach slowly started to close. He turned to Naruto.

"The wound's closing. Make sure nothing's coming while she heals. Make sure whatever that 'shadow' was isn't coming to get the rest of us. And stay close." Naruto's bright blue eyes burned with curiosity, but he nodded and ran off. Kakashi leaned over and touched his forehead to hers. She was burning with a fever and her breathing was starting to get a little labored.

"Hang in there, Asamoya. I'll get you back. I'll protect you." Asamoya's eyes opened and she smiled at him, even if he was in close proximity.

"I know, Kakashi-sensei, I know." Kakashi smiled and pulled back, giving her a look.

"Now, either you take both of us, or you go our speed. Which is it going to be?" Asamoya giggled and then winced, pressing the hand that wasn't holding Kakashi's onto wound.

"It'll be another hour before I'll heal completely. I'll have to go your human speed." Kakashi nodded, gently picking her up. She curled against his chest trustingly and he smiled. "I feel so cold…" he barely heard her murmur. His visible eye widened and he turned to where Naruto had disappeared to.

"Naruto! Back to me! Quickly!" He yelled. Naruto leapt through the bushes and threw a questioning look at Asamoya's position. "Hurry." Kakashi took off through the treetops.

"I found what the shadow was, Kakashi-sensei. It was a giant snake." Naruto told Kakashi, following him quickly. Kakashi passed the unusually-calm shinobi a look. "Do you remember when Jiraiya took me for training? Well, we spent time in the woods, learning about poisons." Kakashi's eyes widened. "That snake's poison can kill even the strongest shinobi in two hours." Kakashi seriously took off, running on nothing but adrenaline. Naruto struggled to keep up with his pace, but, in only half an hour they made it to the outskirts of the forest.

"Got get Sakura. Look at the training area first. I'll take her to Tsunade!" Naruto nodded and took off running in a different direction. Suddenly remembering something, the orange-clad shinobi stopped, looking back at him.

"Tell baa-chan that it was the akayoru!" He yelled before taking off running again. Kakashi's blood ran cold at the sound of the name. He had heard about the akayoru snake. It acted like any other snake venom up until the final half hour. The victim started screaming in agony, trying to kill themselves.

"Hang in there, Asamoya. Stay with me. Come on, put those youkai genes to work. Don't you _dare_ die on me, do you hear me?" Asamoya curled tighter against his chest.

"I hear you Kakashi-sensei, I hear you. I'll stay here for as long as I can. There's poison in my bloodstream. My body can't keep up." Her green eyes found his and he felt overcome with a protective feeling when he saw the amount of fear there. "Am…am I going to die, Kakashi-sensei?" Kakashi shook his head fiercely.

"Of course not. I won't let you." Asamoya gave him a weak smile. Kakashi used a displacement jutsu to teleport straight Tsunade's office. "Tsunade. We need your help. She's been poisoned." Tsunade's eyes widened at the sight of Asamoya.

"Shizune!" Tsunade yelled. The black-haired woman sprinted into the room and went wide-eyed with surprise when he saw Asamoya's position. "Hurry up and prepare the emergency room in this building. _Now_." Shizune quickly scrambled out of the room and Tsunade stood, moving over to inspect the hanyou in Kakashi's arms. "Did you see what happened?"

"No, I didn't see it. We were doing a training exercise and she accidentally went into the forest of death." Tsunade's eyes widened and Asamoya groaned at her own stupidity. "Since she can run faster than all of us, I told her to start getting the whole team out of the forest. She took Sakura first and then got lost her way back. A snake got to her. I sent Naruto after –" Shizune burst back in the room.

"It's done, Tsunade-sama." Tsunade nodded at her and motioned Kakashi to follow her. Kakashi did so quickly, not wanting to spare any time that could be helping Asamoya. Tsunade gave him a pointed look and he nodded.

"I sent Naruto after the 'shadow' that Asamoya said had had attacked her. The wound had started closing and didn't think much of any sign of poison until I felt that she had a fever. I called Naruto back and we ran out of the forest. He told me that Jiraiya had taught him about the poisons and things when they had gone training. He said that he recognized the snake as the akayoru." Tsunade stopped dead in her tracks, paling considerably. Suddenly, she threw open the door and pointed to the table.

"Lay her there and get out quickly." Kakashi gently laid Asamoya on the table and brushed her hair out of her eyes.

"Hang in there, all right? Promise me that you're going to keep fighting." Asamoya nodded.

"I promise, Kakashi-sensei…" He smiled and turned to leave but she reached out and grabbed his sleeve. "Do you have to go, Kakashi-sensei?" Kakashi turned back and nodded, holding her hand and squeezing it gently.

"Yeah. But I'll be right outside all right? I want to come back in here and have you all better, so you keep fighting. You promised, remember?" Asamoya frowned but nodded. Kakashi set her hand back on the table and walked quickly out of the room before he could be stopped again.

He wasn't sure if he could force himself to leave if she asked him to stay again. Tsunade shut the door quickly behind him and he leaned against the wall, trying to stop himself from shaking. Naruto and Sakura showed up a few minutes later, their eyes wide as they took in Kakashi's appearance. He looked over at them, giving them a weak smile.

"Tsunade's working with her right now. Sakura…maybe you could go help with the healing process." Sakura nodded and walked to the door. She stopped and touched Kakashi's shoulder, giving him a smile.

"Don't worry, Kakashi-sensei. We'll make her better, I promise." Kakashi gave her a smile in return and she walked into the room, shutting the door softly behind her. Kakashi collapsed back against the wall, closing his eyes again.

"Sensei?" Naruto muttered, concern in his voice. Kakashi forced his head back up and looked at him questioningly. "When are you going to tell her that you've fallen in love with her?" Kakashi gave a start of surprise, staring at his student.

"W-what? Why would you say something like that?" Naruto rolled his eyes and pointed to the closed door.

"Ever since you met her, you've been acting really weird. You're the only one she'll let even come near her. And you're the only one she calls by first name. She's in love with you, and you're in love with her. Admit it, sensei." Kakashi stared at the closed door.

"Even if I was, Naruto, you know the rules. A sensei and a student can't be in a relationship. She's my student. I'm not _allowed_ to have any feelings for her, remember? And anyway, I doubt that she really likes me back. She told me that I'm the only person that's ever tried to protect her. She's just happy that she's got someone to depend on." Naruto glared at him.

"Kakashi-sensei! Since when have you let mere _rules_ stop you? Tell her you love her or I will." Kakashi glared over at Naruto, but he could tell that the shinobi meant what he said. He sighed and looked at the door again.

"It won't matter if she doesn't survive. I'll tell you what, Naruto. If you promise to give me a little time, I'll tell her on my own." Naruto glared at him for a few more minutes before sighing and nodding, leaning against a different wall.

"Fine. You have a week before I tell her that you love her myself. And don't think I'll forget, Kakashi-sensei. I have a good memory when it comes to things like this." Kakashi rolled his eyes and leaned against his wall, watching the door intently.

Another fifteen minutes passed, then half an hour, then an entire hour without word on Asamoya's condition. Kakashi had the strongest urge to go in and break the door down. He moved farther away from the door in order to prevent such a thing from occurring. Naruto was tapping his foot impatiently, the look on his face telling Kakashi that he was thinking about doing something along the same lines. Suddenly, the door opened, startling both men standing near the door. Sakura stepped out, her brow lined with a light sheen of sweat. She turned to Kakashi and smiled.

"She's going to be fine." Kakashi nearly fell to the floor in relief. He had to stop himself from going into the room at that, but he merely nodded. Sakura smiled. "It was really strange though, Kakashi-sensei. The poison seemed to be so much slower going through the bloodstream than with a normal person, but the anti-venom that we were pumping into her system spread through much faster than a normal person. She must have some strange healing ability or something." Kakashi shrugged his shoulders and looked towards the door. Sakura smiled.

"Go on in, Kakashi-sensei. She was asking for you. Tsunade says that you can take her home as long as you promise to let her rest." Kakashi nodded and walked into the room. Asamoya was still lying on the table, but she had most of her color back and she was breathing steadily. Tsunade was talking to her, distracting her attention, but the next time she took a breath, her eyes snapped over to look at him. A smile lit up her face and she pushed herself to a sitting position. Kakashi moved to help her, but Tsunade was closer and got her into a sitting position.

"Kakashi-sensei." Her eyes were alight with accomplishment. "I did it, Kakashi-sensei. I kept fighting, just like you told me to. And I won, Kakashi-sensei." Kakashi let out a relieved chuckle and walked over to her. He leaned over and pressed his forehead to hers. She smiled at him.

"Good girl, Asa-chan. You won." Asamoya wrapped her arms around his neck in a hug and Kakashi, though surprised, hugged her back. He gently put his hand under her knees and lifted her up, trying to be as careful as possible. She sensed this and let out a giggle, put a hand to her stomach.

"I'm good now, Kakashi-sensei. Look." She lifted her hand to him. "No blood. The wound's completely closed." Kakashi smiled at her and let out a quiet chuckle. He leaned close to her ear.

"I wish that dealing with human students was as less stressful." Asamoya's eyes widened for a moment before she burst into giggles. Tsunade's eyes widened as she watched the contact between the two of them. Was it only two days ago that she shied away from all contact? Tsunade grinned and leaned against the wall. Mission – Accomplished.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

The next few days passed by rather quickly. A few tips on Sasuke stopped Naruto from remembering anything about the light threat he had left on Kakashi, but nothing could distract the jounin from his hanyou crush. Asamoya had truly blossomed in the few days she had spent with Kakashi. She had begun to make friends with a few of the shinobi in the village, much to Kakashi's excitement. The first few days, plus the short day of recovery she had been forced to endure, had been spent with her learning how to read and write. She was nearly as good as he was now. He had asked if accelerated learning was another part of being part youkai, but she hadn't known.

His comment had seemed to spark some unending determination to learn anything and everything she could about her youkai blood. Kakashi tried to get her to do other things, like make new friends with other people her age, or do training with Naruto and Sakura, but she was different when she stopped her newfound obsession with research. She was distracted. There was something that was bothering her. He tried to approach the subject numerous times, but even then, she seemed distracted, her eyes sometimes focusing on where his headband covered his left eye.

"Asamoya." He approached again, the fourteenth day of her stay with him. The hanyou girl looked up from the thick volume she was reading. "I can tell that there's something specific that's bothering you. Will you not tell me what it is?" She put a bookmark into the book and sighed. He watched as she got to her feet and walked over to him, sitting beside him and looking right into his visible eye.

"Why do you have a sharingan in one eye and not the other one, Kakashi-sensei?" Kakashi gave a start of surprise at her question and then stood, walking over to the shelf and picking up the picture of the original team seven. Kakashi sat back down next to her and handed the picture to her.

"Do you remember what I said about why I wore my mask?" Asamoya nodded, leaning against him slightly. "Well, we were on a mission. It was my first day as a jounin, and I got to command. I was cocky, I'll admit. Minato-sensei went off to distract the enemy while we carried out the mission on our own. Rin," he reached around her shoulder to point at the female on the team, "got captured by the enemy. I was still bound and determined to carry out the mission as Minato-sensei had ordered us to, but Obito had other plans. He beat some sense into me that day and we went to help Rin.

"I ended up being injured when I pushed Obito out of the way of an attack. An enemy shinboi cut my eye, rendering it useless." Kakashi pushed his headband up, keeping his eye closed, but showing her the scar. "He felt bad about it, but we were on a mission and there wasn't much we could do about it then. His sharingan awakened and he could fight better then, but...then we were tricked.

"We rescued Rin, but there was still one more enemy. He made a rock shelter collapse on us and because I was then blinded because of my left eye, I got hit and Obito sacrificed himself to get me out safely. He was caught under a large rock, the likes of which we couldn't move. Obito knew that he was dying and he asked Rin to implant his newly-acquired sharingan in my useless left eye socket. It was his dying wish and she honored it." Asamoya frowned, leaning up and gently tracing the scar with her light fingers. Kakshi involuntarily shivered at her light touch, but she didn't seem to notice.

"Why do you have to keep it covered all the time?" Her fingers gingerly grazed his closed eyelid. "Or keep your eye closed?" She asked softly. Kakashi sighed quietly.

"Well, I'm not an Uchiha. I don't have the right blood to control it, so it stays active all the time. It uses up my chakra too fast." Asamoya nodded slowly. She was closer than she was normally and Kakashi couldn't tell if he was nervous or if he was feeling anticipation.

"I read somewhere about something that the youkai can do. If I can form the sharingan to your blood, you'll be able to activate it whenever you want to, just like a normal Uchiha would." Kakashi's normal eye widened. "Will you let me try?" Kakashi paused and thought it over for a moment.

"Sure. Tell me what you need me to do. Or not do for that matter." Asamoya moved away from the close proximity, much to Kakashi's disappointment.

"Lay back." She commanded in a soft voice. Kakashi did as he was told, laying back with his head against the arm of the couch. Asamoya took a deep breath. "Try not to move too much okay? The book I read didn't say how exactly it felt for the person this was happening to. I-I'm afraid th-that it might h-hurt you." Kakashi reached up and grabbed her hand.

"And this is what's been distracting you for the past few days? The fact that you wanted to do this for me and that it might be painful for me?" Asamoya nodded, looking down. Kakashi smiled and let go of her hand. "Whatever it does, Asamoya, it won't hurt as bad as the surgery that got it there in the first place." Asamoya nodded, taking another deep breath and kneeling next to his head. His calm, coal black eye met her frightened green ones and she seemed to steel herself. Her fingers traced his scar again, then the shape of his closed eye.

Asamoya began murmuring in a language that Kakashi didn't know. Suddenly, searing pain ripped through his eye and it was all he could do to clench his eyes shut and try and pretend that the pain didn't exist. Asamoya's fingers tensed slightly as she sensed his pain, but she kept on. Fire seared through his veins, but he kept himself from writhing in pain. Suddenly, Asamoya's murmuring turned into screams. Kakashi sat up automatically, reaching out and wrapping his arms around her. He was surprised to find that, even with both eyes open, he couldn't see the flow of chakra around either of them. She had succeeded.

"Asamoya, what happened? What's going on?" Her eyes were open and staring sightlessly into the distance, looking at something Kakashi couldn't see. "Asamoya? Asamoya, it's all right. I'm all right. Asamoya look at me." Asamoya let out a small, strangled whimper. Kakashi's eyes narrowed and he lifted her chin so that she was looking directly at him. There was fear in her eyes; she was absolutely petrified.

"Listen to me now, Asamoya. Look at me and only me. Tell me what is wrong." Asamoya's lips parted slightly, but she didn't utter a sound. He shook her gently. "Asamoya!"

"The…the body walks. It watches you even now, Kakashi-sensei! The body that they eye rightfully belongs to walks, but the spirit isn't the same! Uchiha Obito is dead, he should have died a long time ago, but his body still walks…" Her green eyes held Kakashi's confused black ones. "He knows about everything. He's coming. He's coming, Kakashi-sensei!"

"What are you talking about, Asamoya? Why are you so afraid? Who's coming?" Asamoya shook her head, hiding her face in his chest. Kakashi's arms pulled gently, allowing her to press herself against him in comfort.

"Tobi. A man they call Tobi. He wears a black cloak with red clouds." Kakashi's eyes widened. "His real name is Uchiha Madara. He stole Obito's broken body from under the rocks, he possessed it! Kakashi, he's coming! He knows whatever you do because he spies through that eye." Kakashi wrapped his arms around her tightly.

"Don't worry about anything, Asamoya. Don't worry. I'm going to protect you. I'm going to keep you safe." She shook her head, letting out a soft sob. Kakashi's heart clenched in agony at the sound.

"No, Kakashi, you can't. You won't be able to. I've seen what he was capable of! He controlled Kyuubi-sama on the night that your sensei, Minato, died. He'll kill you without a thought against it. The only reason that he's coming here is because of me. They want me to fight on their side because I'm a half-demon." Her voice was cracking. Her bright green eyes met his and he saw the solid fear and self-sacrifice reflected there. "Just let them take me. I'll just go and meet him before he can get here. I _won't_ be the cause of trouble for you anymore, Kakashi. I won't allow myself to be any more trouble." Kakashi tightened his grip and he pulled her closer.

"No." He growled, his voice a little harsher than he had meant it to be. She tried to pull away, but he held fast and wouldn't be budged.

"Kakashi-sensei, I know that Tsunade-sama charged you with protecting me, but you don't have to do that anymore. I won't put you out anymore. You can go back to just being Sakura and Naruto's sensei." A smile graced her trembling lips as she fought back the panic that was rising in her throat. She tried to fight back the feeling of security that came with being enveloped into his arms. "I'll just move on, keep on the run, just as I always have." Kakashi's eyes narrowed as she opened her mouth to say more and her words abruptly cut off.

"Do you think that I'm refusing to let you sacrifice yourself to the Akatsuki because I've been _charged_ with protecting you? Asamoya, as the hokage or Naruto or Sakura or anyone else will tell you, I don't follow orders very well after Obito died. I don't do what I'm told just because I'm _ordered_ to." His eyes met and held hers, willing her to stay, to understand.

"Asamoya, I'll protect you because I want to. I…well, I'm not sure if you'll understand this because of your past, but, I _love _you, Asamoya. I protect you because I love you. And I'm not going to give that up because you've got some deranged sense of self-sacrifice." Asamoya's eyes widened slightly and the fight seemed to leave her in a rush. Kakashi was suddenly holding her up, their eyes still locked in the same embrace they were currently in.

"You…love me? _Me_, Kakashi-sensei? _Why_?" She was staring at him in shock, and he wasn't sure whether or not she was happily shocked or shockingly shocked. Kakashi gave her a smile and nodded.

"I do, Asamoya. I love you because you're you. It's hard to explain the exact reasonings behind why a person falls in love, but you're just going to have to go with me on this, all right?" He gripped her shoulders and stared straight into her eyes, leaning closer to her. "I love you and only you, Asamoya." She grabbed small fistfuls of his shirt and leaned closer to him.

"I…love you too, Kakashi-sensei. I don't understand the real meaning of the word love, but…" He leaned down and touched his forehead to hers. She closed her eyes and leaned closer to him. "I've never felt this way with anyone before…what other feeling could it be? I've known them all…except for this one." Kakashi smiled and held her even closer. He moved his forehead off of hers and laid his chin on the top of her head, pulling her head in so that she was laying against his shoulder.

"Now you can see why I won't allow you to go, Asamoya. Please. Allow me to try and protect you. We'll go to Tsunade. The Akatsuki are a threat to the village's security. Wouldn't it be a twist if the ANBU were ordered to protect you?" Asamoya laughed quietly, nodding her head. "Do you want to walk on your own or do you want me to carry you." Asamoya snorted and looked up and him.

"I can walk on my own, Kakashi-sensei. I'm not so weak that I have to be carried places. That snake was a fluke, you know." Kakashi chuckled and reluctantly pulled away from her, holding out his hand for her to take.

"That's what I wanted to hear, my hanyou." Asamoya smiled and took his hand gently. He squeezed comfortingly and pulled his headband down so that it covered his scar. She frowned and he smiled again. "I'm very appreciative of your actions today, Asa-chan, but I think that the scar is reason enough to hide that eye." Asamoya pouted, but nodded her head. Kakashi smiled and lead her gently, but quickly through the Konoha streets. Asamoya noticed a few guards sitting beside the door and halted, a grin lighting up her face.

"My turn." Kakashi's visible eye widened as she tensed her muscles. Suddenly, with a short burst of wind, they were standing in front of Tsunade's office. Kakashi's head spun slightly and she let out a soft, dramatic sigh. "It seems like I know the way to Tsunade's office much better than I know the way to anywhere else." Kakashi let out a winded chuckle and Asamoya shook her head, grinning. She knocked gently on the door.

"Come on in, then. Lord, how am I going to survive this job if I can't have five minutes of peace?" Tsunade muttered, low enough that Kakashi couldn't pick out exact words, but Asamoya's sensitive hearing could. She let out a quiet giggle and opened the door. Tsunade's eyes widened slightly when she saw them and she shoved her paperwork aside. "Hello, you two. What's wrong this time?" Asamoya suddenly turned downcast, reminded of what had transpired in her attempts to help. Kakashi's hand let go of hers and he wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

"It's all right, Asamoya. No one is going to be mad at you for what you've done. Just tell Tsunade what you know and she'll take care of the rest." Asamoya nodded and leaned into his embrace, seeking comfort as she told Tsunade what happened when she had tried to form the sharingan to Kakashi's blood. Tsunade's eyes narrowed slightly and her lips pursed, thinking of what that could mean.

"So, the Akatsuki is now after both you and Naruto because of demons. Oh, wonderful." Her tone was sour with disapproval and Asamoya whimpered softly, thinking that she was in trouble. "No, no, I'm not mad, Asamoya. It's just one more thing I have to do as hokage. I don't understand why people _want_ this job." She continued muttering to herself about being the hokage. Kakashi stepped behind his hanyou and wrapped his arms around her in a backwards hug.

"You're all right now, Asa-chan. Tsunade's not going to let them take you _or_ Naruto. And now that you've sealed off the sharingan and formed it to my blood, Madara can't spy on us anymore. It's not his sharingan anymore, now is it?" Asamoya shook her head, taking a deep, shuddering breath.

"But now he's coming _here_ and he's going to be able to see everything with the eye that's still connected. Kakashi-sensei, I've doomed Konoha. I'm going to be the death of people here." She looked into his eyes. "Kakashi-sensei, please. Let me move on. I love you, Kakashi-sensei, and that's why I don't want to see you get hurt because of me." Tears fell out of her eyes and Kakashi leaned forward and caught a few of them, hugging her close. She laid her head on his chest and let out a soft, broken sob.

"I know how you feel, Asamoya, but I'm not going to let you leave me." Kakashi looked up at Tsunade, who was looking at them with a sly grin on her face. "Tsunade. Please, give her some piece of mind. She feels so guilty…" Tsunade's grin disappeared and she nodded, taking a piece of paper and writing frantically.

"Because the enemy knows so much about us thanks to Kakashi's eye, this will be a little more difficult than I would have originally hoped it would be. Kakashi, I hope you don't mind that I'm assigning an ANBU squad of your choice to your house and then the rest of them can perimeter the village, because you're not having any say in it. The jounins should be on full alert. It's a good thing that Naruto went out with Yamato, Sai, and Sakura on that mission to try and find Sasuke again. We can at least take one demon out of their way." Asamoya flinched at the term and Kakashi held her tighter, glaring at Tsunade, who sighed apologetically.

"That's fine. Assign the team with my old captain to the house. I can trust him not to try and pick on Asamoya." The hanyou girl looked up at Kakashi, a slight trace of fear in her teary green eyes.

"The ANBU are going to be living with us too?" She asked in a whisper. Kakashi shook his head, giving her a comforting smile, trying to calm her down before she broke into tears again.

"No, no, Asamoya, that's not what we mean. The ANBU will be patrolling around the house and maybe one or two will be stationed inside, but you won't be having any contact with them at all. The easier we can make this, the better. You're going to be fine, all right? Don't worry. I'll be here." Asamoya visibly calmed and put her head on Kakashi's chest again. Tsunade looked at Kakashi in amazement.

"Kakashi, I'm sorry to break up your little 'session' there, but I do need to speak with you. Alone." Asamoya's eyes widened in panic and Kakashi murmured comforts into her ear. "She can be with Shizune for a little while. You don't mind, do you, Asamoya?" Asamoya looked up and bit her lip in visible hesitation.

"It won't be for very long, will it, Tsunade-sama? I can come back to Kakashi-sensei soon?" Tsunade's eyes softened at her trembling voice and she nodded slowly.

"Of course, Asamoya. We'll come and get you as soon as we're done. Shizune!" The black-haired assistant quickly sprinted into the room. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw how close Kakashi and Asamoya were, but didn't say anything about it if she had any questions. "Take Asamoya and go do something. I need to talk with Kakashi." Shizune nodded and turned to Asamoya with a smile.

"Come on, Asamoya." She held her hand out for the hanyou to take. She looked up at Kakashi, who nodded slightly and gave her a final hug before releasing her. Asamoya reluctantly backed out of his grasp and took Shizune's hand, allowing herself to be led out of the room by the raven-haired assistant. Kakashi turned and glared at Tsunade.

"You sure as hell had better have an explanation for why you just took her away from me, Tsunade-sama." Tsunade's eyes narrowed at Kakashi's clipped, icy tone, but she brushed it off.

"What exactly is the extent of your relationship with Kongyou Asamoya, Hatake Kakashi?" Kakashi's visible eye widened at the change of conversation and Tsunade's very business-like tone when she said it.

"W-what are you talking about? What does that have to do with anything that's going on? She tried to help me out and it backfired. Our 'relationship' has nothing to do with it." Tsunade sighed and sat down again, interlacing her fingers.

"You should know, Kakashi, that relationships between a sensei and their students are forbidden. It's against the rules for you to love Asamoya. I'm doing all I can to hide your relationship from anyone untrustworthy, but, it's getting difficult." Kakashi's visible eye narrowed.

"Asamoya and I don't have a serious relationship like that, Tsunade. Do not assume things that you should not assume." His voice had become dangerously low and Tsunade gave him an incredulous look.

"Hatake Kakashi, she said she loved you. You can't hide this from me." Kakashi mentally cursed himself and sighed, leaning heavily against the wall.

"But what can I do, Tsunade-sama? I love her and she's returned my feelings. How can we not be together through all that? She _needs_ me, Tsunade and I need her to stay here." Tsunade sighed softly and nodded slightly.

"I know, Kakashi, and that's what makes the situation so difficult. I don't think she'd do as well with another team. Here's the only alternative that I can think of." Tsunade's harsh amber eyes met Kakashi's visible black one. "Put her through the chuunin exam. Then, after she's not a genin anymore, she technically can't be your student." Kakashi sighed and nodded.

"That makes sense, but you have to be in a three-man cell in order to apply for the chuunin exam. And Naruto and Asamoya are the only two that aren't chuunin that are in their age group." Tsunade shrugged.

"Help with Naruto's efforts and find Sasuke. He's not a chuunin either, you know." Kakashi's visible eye widened and he nodded slowly.

"That makes sense. Thank you, Tsunade-sama. But what about the situation at hand? What are we going to do about the Akatsuki trying to take Asamoya? And what do they _want_ with her? It's not like they can remove her demon; it's a part of who she is, not something that's been bonded to her. And there's no way that she'll willingly fight for them." Tsunade looked at him seriously.

"Kakashi, she's very easily deterred from what _she_ wants if someone else's interests are on the line. Think about what she would do if the Akatsuki really threatened the village." Kakashi shook his head.

"I'll make her believe that the only way to stop them is to fight them off. I'll help her, Tsunade. She's not going to go with them." Tsunade gave him another serious look, shaking her head slowly.

"Tell me, Kakashi. What would your hanyou student do if the man they call 'Tobi' actually came here and fought with her? What would she do if, in the middle of the fight, someone got hurt and the only way she could save them was to surrender?" Kakashi stepped forward to argue and Tsunade stood, slamming her hands on her desk. "What would she do if _your_ life was on the line?" Kakashi's argument died in his throat and he leaned back against the wall, his eyes wide.

"You're right. You're absolutely right, but…" He shook his head hopelessly. "What am I supposed to do? I can't sit on the sidelines and do nothing when her safety is on the line. You saw me when she got poisoned, Tsunade. I'm not capable of it." Tsunade shook her head.

"Hatake Kakashi, I'm proposing this to you. Take it seriously. Do not make your decision lightly." Kakashi nodded, waiting for some sliver of hope. "I suggest that you take her out on a mission. Get her away from Konoha." Kakashi shook his head.

"No. She'd know. She'd never leave here when she believes that it's her fault the Akatsuki are coming." Tsunade sighed and sat down again.

"Take her home, Kakashi, and think on it further. The ANBU will be there sometime tonight." Kakashi nodded, walking out the door. His head was spinning with the new possibilities. Was the only way to keep Asamoya safe kidnapping her? He had a lot to think on tonight, none of it pleasant thoughts.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

"You need to stop worrying, Asamoya. Everything is going to be just fine." Kakashi tried to soothe the distressed hanyou. Asamoya had been a wreck ever since they had tried to form his sharingan to his own blood so that he could activate it at will. That had been a week ago. She shook her head slightly.

"You can't know that, Kakashi-sensei. You can't know that everything will be fine. You can't _know_." Tears entered her eyes again and he wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. They were both sitting on the couch inside Kakashi's small home. He could slightly hear the ANBU murmuring orders to each other outside, sharing reports and things. He bet that she could hear what they were saying perfectly.

"Please, Asamoya, please stop crying. You know that I can't stand it when you cry." He whispered softly in her ear. She moved her hand to wipe at her eyes and looked at him apologetically.

"I'm sorry, Kakashi-sensei. I'm trying. I really am." Kakashi sighed and pressed his hidden lips to her head. He nuzzled her lovingly, nodding slightly. It calmed her when he did this and he could feel it working. Her posture was becoming less tense and more relaxed.

"I know that you're trying, Asamoya. But really, you don't need to worry. We've got Captain Soen and his squad watching after us, making sure that no one gets in that we don't want here. And we've got the rest of the ANBU patrolling the perimeter of the village. _And_ we've got Yamanaka Inoichi watching the barrier around Konoha. They're not going to get in here without us knowing." Asamoya swallowed softly, staying quiet for a few minutes.

"But I heard from one of the ANBU that two of the Akatsuki members once got past the barrier _and_ the guards _and _the ANBU. How do we know that they won't have the chance of doing it again?" She was tensing again. Kakashi sighed, releasing her so that he could look into her eyes.

"We didn't know they were capable of doing it before, Asamoya. We know how they got in and who got in, and we've come up with ways of preventing it from happening again. I swear, Asamoya, if you do not stop worrying, I'm going to take Tsunade up on her offer and take you on a mission to get you out of here." Asamoya's lips set stubbornly and he couldn't help but smile.

"You're not taking me anywhere I don't want to go, Kakashi-sensei. You probably couldn't even catch me to try." Kakashi shrugged and nodded.

"That's probably true, Asa-chan." Her face turned a light shade of pink when he used her nickname to address her. "You're quick but…" he leaned in closer to her, closing his eyes halfway. Her blush worsened and she leaned away from him slightly, nervous by his actions. "You're just a kitten." Asamoya's eyes widened and she pouted.

"Kakashi-sensei! You're so mean!" A giggle escaped her lips. Kakashi smiled and inwardly gave himself a pat on the back for being able to distract her so easily. He decided that the best course of action was to completely distract her from the problem at hand.

"Ah, but you know that it's all out of love, dear koneko-chan." Asamoya rolled her eyes and gave him a playful look.

"What? Is that my new nickname now, Kakashi-sensei? You're awful." She gave him a light, playful shove. Kakashi chuckled and grasped her wrists in his hands, pulling her closer so that her head was on his chest and he was cradling her. Asamoya curled up comfortably in his embrace, closing her eyes in contentment. She sat like that for a moment before Kakashi leaned in closer to her.

"It wouldn't surprise me if you started purring right about now, koneko-chan." Asamoya posture immediately snapped up and she gave him a roll of her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. Kakashi chuckled at her actions. Suddenly, the ANBU captain, Captain Soen, appeared next to the couch they were sitting on. Asamoya, still distrustful of anyone wearing an ANBU mask, leaned up against Kakashi, a light, menacing growl escaping her pale lips. Kakashi held her, though neither of them knew if it was to comfort her or restrain her.

"Kakashi. The squad is getting restless with nothing to do out there. Quite frankly, _I'm _getting restless out there with nothing to do. Are you sure that this girl saw the Akatsuki coming soon?" The wolf-masked ANBU captain nodded his head in Asamoya's direction. Asamoya snorted and broke free of Kakashi's grasp, standing up and looking through the mask into the ANBU captain's eyes. It was almost comical to watch, considering Asamoya was a head shorter than Soen.

"If you had _ever_ seen _half_ of what I saw, you would be as paranoid as I am. Tobi is coming. I've told you all that I don't know if he's bringing the whole of Akatsuki with him, or just making it a solo mission. _I don't know_. What I do know is, at least he's coming. And I also know that he's the one that controlled Kyuubi-sama when he was forced to attack Konoha all those years ago. Do you really want to let your guard down when a criminal like that is coming into your village, Captain Soen?" Asamoya's voice turned icy. Kakashi held his breath, waiting on Soen's reaction.

The ANBU captain stood quietly for a moment, not making a move. Then suddenly, he back-handed the hanyou girl, who merely turned her face to the side. Soen then grabbed the hanyou girl by the chin and forced her to look back up at him. Kakashi got to his feet in anger until he saw Asamoya's eyes. They were narrowed dangerously. There was no way she was going to let that slide.

"You'd better watch yourself, wench. Where I come from, there are punishments when a woman stands up to a man like that." Asamoya suddenly got a smirk on her face, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly.

"Then we don't really have a problem here, do we, Captain? I mean, there isn't a punishment for a woman insulting another woman is there?" Soen let out a snarl and raised his hand to hit her again. Kakashi moved forward, trying to restrain the both of them, but Asamoya was quicker than him. She swiftly wrenched her chin away from Soen's grasp, ducked away from his blow and gave him a good punch to the gut.

Kakashi made a grab to get her away from the ANBU captain before it escalated into a full-on fight, but there was no stopping a woman on a rampage. Scratch that – there was no stopping _this_ woman on a rampage. Asamoya was quick and there was no way Kakashi was getting to her if Soen couldn't.

"Asamoya! Soen! Stop this crazy fight! What good is this doing?" Asamoya's green eyes slid over to him for a moment before dodging a kunai that Soen had pulled out of its holster. Her eyes widened and she looked for something to block his attacks with. Kakashi grabbed Soen's wrist as he was about to strike again, his visible eye narrowed dangerously.

"There will be no such fighting in my house, Captain Soen." The wolf-masked man let out a deep snarl, but slowly lowered the knife in his hand. Asamoya stood a little ways away, tensed and waiting for the next battle move. Kakashi glared at her as well and she shrank under his gaze. "Asamoya, you need to apologize to Captain Soen. _Now_." Her eyes narrowed slightly at the obvious injustice, but she turned obediently to Soen and bowed her head slightly.

"I'm sorry, Captain Soen." She murmured in a sweet, innocent voice. Kakashi was almost fooled by it, until she gave Soen a dirty look from under her hair. Kakashi let out an exasperated sigh and let go of Soen's hand, moving towards Asamoya.

"C'mon, Asamoya, you need to get to sleep anyway. Let's let Captain Soen get back to his post." Asamoya's eyes suddenly widened and she was beside him, pushing him slightly away from Soen. She gripped her stomach and doubled over, letting out a quiet whimper of pain. Kakashi quickly glared at Soen, who was holding a bloody kunai knife. He gave Kakashi an icy look.

"That'll keep the little wench sedated for a few hours. Maybe she'll give those of us that are working a little break for a while instead of treating us like we're below her." If Soen's face wasn't covered by a mask, Kakashi was sure he would have spit in Asamoya's direction. "As if anything could be below filth like her." The ANBU captain snarled out before disappearing in a plume of smoke. Kakashi laid a hand on Asamoya's shoulder, but she shrugged it off.

"No, it'll heal in a minute. It's not a very deep wound. That bastard." She muttered quietly, rubbing the wound on her stomach. Sweat beads were beginning to form on her forehead and he could tell that she was weakening. "He put a nerve toxin onto that kunai. Kakashi…I've been…drugged…" The hanyou girl's murmur slurred slightly and her voice trailed off before she fell back into his carefully awaiting arms.

"Asamoya?" She was completely limp in his arms, but she was breathing steadily. It looked like she was just sleeping. Kakashi sighed slightly and picked her up, being very careful with her, and laid her gently in her bed. Usually, when she fell asleep before she was in bed and he laid her in it, she curled slightly when her head hit the pillow. Tonight, however, she didn't even move. It unnerved him. His visible eye narrowed and he used a displacement jutsu to get outside.

"Where's Soen?" He asked one of the ANBU outside his door, trying to keep his voice light, but even he could tell that his voice was laced with venom. The ANBU pointed to the roof of the tall building ahead of them. Kakashi nodded his thanks curtly and used another displacement jutsu to get to the top of the building. Soen was muttering to another ANBU member, but their conversation went silent when Kakashi approached.

"What did you do to Asamoya?" He growled out, dangerously close to slipping over the edge and starting a fight of his own with his old ANBU captain. Soen dismissed the other ANBU member with a slight nod and turned to Kakashi. Even with the mask, Kakashi could tell that Soen was glaring at him.

"If you can't control your little pet, Kakashi, someone else will step in and do it for you. All I did was sedate her. She'll back to normal in a few hours. A normal person would be out for three days." Soen accented the word 'normal', snorting slightly. Kakashi found himself trying to think of the handseals for the chidori and clenched his hands into fists at his side in order to try and prevent such an outcome from occurring.

"She's not a pet, Soen, she's a real person. So what if her lineage is strange? So _what_ if she's got extra powers that the rest of us don't have? Naruto's got the most powerful demon of all inside of him and the ANBU don't seem to have a problem with _him_, do they?" Soen stiffened slightly.

"That's a completely different subject, Kakashi, and you should know that better than the rest of us. Uzumaki Naruto had proven himself to be a very helpful ally in battle. He single-handedly stopped Sabaku no Gaara's bijuu from releasing itself here during the chuunin exams. And the sannin Jiraiya has said that he's no threat as long as the seal is intact." Kakashi barked out a sharp laugh, startling both himself and the wolf-masked captain.

"Oh, so all that Asamoya has to do is prove herself in battle, is that it? Does she have to stop a jinchuuriki from destroying Konoha? Or does she have to go so far as go and defeat Orochimaru single-handedly? When will you start trusting _her_?" Soen snorted, but Kakashi could tell that he was weakening slightly. He knew Soen as a fair person and, with Kakashi laying the bare facts out in front of him, he was beginning to see the injustice that Asamoya was getting.

"I don't know, Kakashi. Something about her doesn't seem right to me. But," Soen smirked at Kakashi; he could feel it. An errant thought crossed his mind; was this what it felt like to his students and those he knew because he was wearing a mask? It was annoying. Kakashi began seriously thinking about not wearing the mask anymore."What I can tell is that you are hopelessly in love with that threat to village security." Kakashi couldn't help a light blush from creeping to his face and he glared.

"So what if I am? She says that she loves me too. What's with everybody and thinking that's a _bad_ thing? It means I understand her better than the rest of you combined. It means that I'm the only one who knows her for who she really is. And I can tell you, here and now, based on true facts alone, Soen, that Kongyou Asamoya is _not a threat_." Soen shrugged his shoulders.

"It's just a hunch, Kakashi. Now, you might need to get some sleep yourself." Kakashi made a move to argue with the wolf-masked captain, but suddenly a pain centered around his abdomen distracted him. He looked down to see the same kunai that had stabbed Asamoya protruding from his stomach. He looked back up at Soen, his eye wide, his vision going blurry.

"Good night, Kakashi. Forgive me." Kakashi choked out an intelligible, angry response before a wave of darkness fell over his vision. Soen looked sadly at Kakashi's fallen body before summoning another one of his ANBU operatives. "Take him to the hospital after we've made our agreement with the Akatsuki member waiting outside the barrier." The ANBU saluted before kneeling down beside Kakashi's limp form and waiting for his signal. Soen leapt down to the small house and the ANBU operatives gathered around him.

"All right, here's what's going to happen. The Akatsuki member that wants the little scum is waiting outside the barrier for us to deliver her before the sky turns to dawn. Her protector has been taken care of. All we need to do is get her out of the barrier and get back here before anyone's the wiser. And remember, we've got to at least _look_ like we've been in a battle. Tsunade can't know what we've done. Are we clear?" The ANBU members around him stood straighter and saluted.

"Yes, Captain Soen, sir!" They all muttered softly. Soen nodded and made a hand motion, sending them all to their respective posts. Soen went into the house and picked up the hanyou girl, who was already starting to break free of the nerve toxin and move. Soen's eyes widened and he looked at the other ANBU member with him.

"We've got to hurry. She's stronger than I thought. She's already breaking the nerve toxin." The ANBU member stared at Asamoya, shocked. He nodded and they quickly left the small house, running full-speed for the barrier. As they ran, the hanyou girl began to stir, as if she was about to wake up. The sun had just begun to rise when they crossed the barrier. They had five minutes while Inoichi sent to Tsunade to see if this squadron was allowed to leave the barrier. Then, they had another fifteen to get back and stumble around like they had just been in some big battle.

"Where is he? Didn't you say that he'd be right outside the barrier? I don't see him." Soen's second-in-command muttered at his right shoulder. A kunai embedded itself in the tree next to them and both Soen and his second pulled out kunai knives of their own. A deep chuckle met their attempts.

"Isn't that the point, ANBU black operative second-in-command?" The black-and-red robed Akatsuki member appeared from the shadows of the trees around them. He seemed to be shrouded in darkness. Even the bright orange on the strange mask he wore seemed to be subdued and hard to spot. "Is that the demon girl?" He asked, motioning to the practically motionless girl in Soen's arms.

"Y-yes." Soen murmured, moving forward and laying her on the ground in front of him. She moved slightly, fighting the motionless of the nerve toxin. As the Akatsuki member came forward, Soen took a few more steps back. The Akatsuki member knelt down beside her, brushing her hair out of her eyes to examine her face.

"What did you do to her to make her sleep, Captain Soen? You did not damage my demon girl, did you?" The man's voice had gone deeper, almost cold. Soen shook his head quickly.

"Of course not. Her protector, Hatake Kakashi, was standing right there beside her. All I did was make a nerve toxin enter her system, sedating her for a little while. She's only a half-demon, so I expected that it might take a little longer to wear off, but she's already breaking free of it." He motioned to the slowly moving girl. She looked as if she was trying to wake up from a slumber. The orange-masked man looked up at him, nodding slowly.

"But of course. And you took care of her protector then? He won't be bothering us today?" Soen shook his head.

"No. I hit him with the same nerve toxin I gave her. He'll be out for a day at least, possibly three at the most, depending. It will give you enough time to get back to your base and do whatever you want with that thing." Soen pointed at Asamoya. The strange man nodded, bending over and picking the girl up. She was beginning to get some muscle control back and she didn't become limp in his arms as she had been forced to for Soen. The ANBU captain noticed.

"Do you want me to hit her with the toxin again? It'll only keep her out for a few more hours, but maybe it'll be enough for you to get her away from here." The strange man shook his head, shifting her weight so that he could carry her easier.

"No. I want her awake as soon as possible. Tell me. Why do you want such a valuable member of your village gone? Could it be that you find her dangerous?" Soen hesitated, wondering what the man's tone could be implying, and then nodded slightly.

"Yes. She's a demon. A demon nearly destroyed our village a few years back and we're not taking any chances with any more of them. Kakashi said that she's not dangerous to anyone, but, even though I trust him, I'm not taking any chances. Besides, Kakashi's in love with her, which made getting him away from her more difficult…" Soen noticed a deadly aura coming from the strange man and took a step back.

"Thank you for your cooperation, Captain Soen. I look forward to cooperating with your squad in the future. You, however, will not live to see the next minute." Soen's gaze was met with that of the sharingan. He let out a gasp that was immediately cut short as he fell to the ground. The second-in-command quickly bent down beside his body and gave it a quick examination. His eyes under his mask widened.

"He's dead." The second looked over at the strange man, who was trembling with what seemed to be withheld laughter. "You killed Captain Soen? Why?" The strange man stopped trembling suddenly, snapping his head in the direction of the new ANBU captain.

"To show you what I'm capable of, Captain. I do so hope that you'll cooperate with me in the future. I hate to think that I would have to do the same thing to you." The second-in-command nodded slightly, frightened for his life against an enemy that he didn't know how to defeat. The man let out a slow, deep laugh at the posture the ANBU operative held. The hanyou girl's eyelids fluttered slightly, signaling that she was about to awaken, and the second-in-command seemed to notice it before the Akatsuki member did. The sharingan eye behind the mask slid down to look at her waking form.

"Thank you again, ANBU, for delivering my newest Akatsuki member to me. I promise you that her extraordinary abilities shall be put to good use within our organization. It's a shame they couldn't have done the same while she was still in your village's possession." Asamoya's eyes opened and took one sweep around before realizing something was terribly wrong. She began to struggle and the Akatsuki member set her on her feet, but kept a restraining hand on her wrist.

"Why are you here? Where am I? What do you want with me? Let me go!" Asamoya struggled to break free of Tobi's strong grasp, but all it did was make him pull her closer.

"I'm here to retrieve you, my pet. You're just outside the barrier of Konoha, and you're coming with me back to the Akatsuki base so that you can learn to use your special abilities. You'll fight for us now." Asamoya shook her head.

"I will _not_ fight for you! I've seen the things that you're capable of, seen the things that you've done to people! I'll not fight for anyone who's done such things without just cause!" She took another look around, her eyes narrowing even more. She began to look more dangerous. "What have you done with Kakashi-sensei?" Tobi shook his head, motioning to the lifeless body of Soen and the deadly calm body of his second-in-command, watching them.

"I did nothing to your sensei, Asamoya, but the ANBU have. They hit him with the same thing that knocked you out. They _stabbed_ him with it." Asamoya let out a growl and her eyes became shadowed. "He's probably bleeding back in Konoha, unable to move to defend himself. How does that make you feel about the ANBU, dearest Asamoya?" Suddenly, Asamoya struck out with the hand that wasn't being held by Tobi and clawed across the mask he wore, creating four deep gashes within its smooth, swirled surface.

"I won't fight for you! I'm not going to do it! Take me back to Kakashi! Let me go back to him _right now_!" She screamed, trying to pull away from his grasp. She used the extra strength she had to snap wrist out of his hand, but the other one suddenly lashed out and grabbed her throat, freezing her in place. She clawed at his hand, glaring at him with smoldering, iridescent green eyes.

"Kongyou Asamaoya." His voice growled out. Her eyes went wide and she stopped clawing at him, looking at his face. Blood was welling out of the deep gashes, making his mask seem even more strangely marked. The sharingan eye in his right eye socket glared out at her. "If you do not come with me willingly, I will send the whole of Akatsuki to come to Konoha and specifically hunt down Hatake Kakashi. Do you understand? Depending on your actions, Hatake Kakashi could die." Asamoya paled, her eyes going wide and the fight going out of her limbs. Tears gathered in her eyes and Tobi slowly let her go.

"Kakashi…Kakashi, I'm sorry…" Her green eyes caught and held those of the ANBU second-in-command. "Please…tell him that I'm sorry…that this wasn't my choice. Tell him not to come after me. Tell him…" a single tear escaped down her beautifully sad face. "Tell him I love him." With a slight rush of the wind, the two of them were gone. The ANBU second shivered at the scene that had unfolded before him. He picked up his Captain's lifeless body and ran back to Konoha as if death were on his heels.


End file.
